Arkiv

Issue 11 – Crossing Borders

Dear readers,

Europe is facing many challenges, but during the past year, one particular event has been on everyone’s mind: migration. Not since World War II have we experienced such a flow of migrants crossing Europe’s outer border in a hope of a better life, away from war, deprivation and misery. With the current momentum in politics, news reporting and overall attention from the public, continuing with business as usual at Teknovatøren felt disconnected from reality. The urge to comment on our contemporaries became inevitable. Therefore, issue #11 of Teknovatøren will focus on crossing borders, both historically but mainly regarding on what is happening now in and around Europe.Dear reader,

The European migration crisis has already been covered extensively in other media. However, we want to illuminate this from within the spirit of Teknovatøren. Technology enables, supports and also hinders people in accessing information, thus preventing them from arriving to Europe. The vulnerability in conflict areas demands that new solutions rapidly evolve and come to those who need them the most. We are reporting on some of these new innovations and inventions which are being both used and modified by refugees and migrants as well as governments and smugglers. There has also been a focus on first-hand content with the starting-point in two interviews: one with a foreign aid PhD-scholar and another with a Syrian refugee. We also problematize beyond the immediately obvious inventions and solutions. By having an Science and Technology Studies (STS) perspective, this allows us study how technological innovations and science affect our understanding of the ongoing European migration crisis.

This deep-dive into a complex, ongoing crisis has been demanding to our writers. Without the work carried out by our writers, designers and especially the editorial staff (Sindre Rådahl Kirchhoff, Stian Larsen, Tobias Kaasa Fossheim and Marc Verbenkov) who all went above and beyond of what was expected from them, this issue simply wouldn’t have been possible to complete.

It is my true pleasure to welcome you, the reader, to Teknovatøren #11, Crossing borders!